PC help please

[The Ape]

I have a problem with my pc and hoping someone here can assist.

Basically when I switch on my pc, it doesn't always boot up. By this I mean the power is clearly on and it lights up but that's it, and then I can hear two very quiet beeps. I then have to turn it off and try turning it on again.

When it works properly it makes a loud bleep and then it boots up.

I had this problem about a year or two ago and it got progressively worse until I had to replace the psu.

Now is the problem I'm having psu related again? Or is it something else? I don't really know enough to work out if it's anything else so any help or suggestions or advice appreciated?

[Damocles8]

I'd try asking tech support for your motherboard, could be PSU related, but it's hard to tell for sure

[The Ape]

Thanks. Sadly I don't have any tech support as it's an old pc. I've put a new psu in today with a higher rating but not convinced its made much difference-will give it a week.

Guess I'll just have to save some cash up and get a new one

[Sir_Turalyon]

If by PSu you mean power supply, I doubt it. You wouldn't experience it just during boot.

I had a similiar problem on my old PC (Pentium II or something about that). Turned out it was memory chips conflicting with motherboard, or each other, and ended when I replaced the memory. I did replace power supply before stumbling upon the solution. You may want to check if there is cheap second-hand memory for your board, if it's cheap enough you can buy it with no regrets if it won't work. Pulling memopry out or switching the chips in slots may have an effect as well.

Fun thing was, my problem required an elaborte ritual to boot PC up (turn PC on, turn PC off, turn screen off, turn PC on, turn PC off, turn screen on, say prayer to mashine god... don't remember later part). It was silly but it did the work, and deviating from it resulted in boot failure .

[The Ape]

That's interesting thanks. I will give the memory a go - its not too expensive actually to pick up another 2 gb. Can't hurt to try!

[PointBlank]

Before you go spanking any more money, have you tried resetting the CMOS?

[Grimmeth]

It sounds like it could be a memory issue - easiest way to test is to pop open the case, take the memory out and (assuming you have more than one module) try putting one in, and then the other. However, memory problems generally don't POST at all (the little 'beeps' you referred to).
Sometimes just taking them out and putting them back in can resolve the issue.
Its not impossible it's a PSU issue, but unlikely, PSU problems generally involve the PSU stopping working altogether, which prevents any power to the system. That said I have seen issues similar to this that have been resolved by the PSU being replaced.
An easy way to check would be to get into the BIOS (it should tell you how to do this on boot, normally pressing the Del key or an 'F' key) and check who actually makes it (there are seveal possiblities of manufacturer - Award, Phoenix etc.)
You should then be able to google the beep code (are they short or long beeps?) and BIOS manufacturer name and see what the issue is (unfortunately there's no standardisation on POST beep codes between manufacturers,so it has to be done this way). That should at least point you in the direction of what the problem is.

If you do buy more memory then make sure what you buy is compatible with your board - there are quite a few different speeds and types out there that may or may not work with your machine (depending on how old it is)

The easiest way to find out is to run the Crucial Scan tool on Crucial's website (Crucial.com) and you can then copy the part numbers into your retailer of choice's website to try to find something cheaper.
I'd recommend not going for the cheapest memory you can find though, as it tends to be poorer quality.

[The Ape]

Thank you all for the replies. I'm going to try resetting the CMOS first as that is the quickest option. I'll then try switching my existing ram around, failing which I'll pick up some new ram and see what happens.

I've already tried the new psu route and it hasn't made much difference. Luckily I have the receipt and 28 days to return it so no harm no foul on that score.

[Peytron]

What is the make of the BIOS? You can look up the beep codes by manufacturer and it can help pinpoint the issue.

[Urgat]

Mmh... there's those flat, round batteries on the motherboard, they're used to keep the BIOS clock running when the PC is off, check if they're not depleted, it happens often on old PC, and it can lead to various troubles.

[Grimmeth]

If the CMOS battery is depleted it tends to give an error message on boot and ask if you want to use default settings.

[Urgat]

On one of my old computers, it'd just make the PC lock up or reboot after a while. It took me a while to figure out what was wrong.

[Grimmeth]

Odd, it's not something I've seen before, as once it's booted to the OS that pretty much takes control of the time settings (at least on newer O/S's anyway).
Of course, on an older machine it could have hit problems when trying to write something back because system time and OS time didn't match.

Still, not exactly a common fault in my experience. I think messing with resetting BIOS's etc is a little bit of a dead end in this instance. What we really need to know is what the beep codes signify.

[Urgat]

Odd, it's not something I've seen before, as once it's booted to the OS that pretty much takes control of the time settings (at least on newer O/S's anyway).
Of course, on an older machine it could have hit problems when trying to write something back because system time and OS time didn't match.

Well i'm not specialist, I'm completely ok with accepting my PC was an oddball It's not a really big deal to check either way, so I thought I'd share that.